Mercedes’s Kimi Antonelli finished third in Singapore, maintaining a 102‑point advantage over teammate George Russell and solidifying his lead in the Drivers’ Championship.
Brake sensor failure forces a rough start
At the start of the event, a fault in the brake sensor was discovered while Antonelli’s car sat on the grid, prompting a quick on‑site repair. However, the team continued the race without any brake data, leaving the driver working without electronic support.
During the first lap, Antonelli reported “no stopping power.” He described how, “when I braked, nothing happened,” and that his braking was “poor” and “almost went into the wall.” The loss of power left him “lifting and coasting” before each braking zone and processing the pedal “very long.”
He added that the car’s speed was further hampered by running in dirty air behind Max Verstappen’s Red Bull and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. “I was running three‑quarters of the race behind a car in dirty air and obviously being so hot,” Antonelli said, noting a lack of brake temperature data and a “hot” feel that “made it not very pleasant.”
Upgrade package remains a limited take‑off
Antonelli also discussed the new upgrade package introduced on Mercedes. He admitted that the car still “is not yet” ready for Singapore’s slow‑speed layout. “With the old package, you know exactly where to put the car, which window, and the car works very nicely. With the new package, we see the potential, but the window is just too small,” he said.
He explained that the new package’s benefits appear mainly in certain corners, but brakes and steering response are “very sensitive” to any differences in approach or attacking style. “I feel like the package is going to be faster… but only once we understand how to use the full potential,” Antonelli replied.
Antonelli’s comments echo the precedent of a previous failure at Malaysia, where the same upgrade struggled to deliver performance. The team now looks to finalise the package’s integration for the remainder of the season.
Allegiances for upcoming races
Austin will be the Brackley outfit’s next outing, a chance to evaluate the upgraded Mercedes under different track conditions. The team aims to use the experience gained in Singapore to make technical adjustments that could prevent a repeat of the brake‑sensor troubles.
With Antonelli’s 102‑point buffer firmly in place, the focus will turn to the performance of the upgraded car and the reliability improvements required after the Singapore incident. The Mercedes squad will now work to put the new package into practice in varied environments.
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